Secrets of the Night
by BetterThanCoffee
Summary: Katara cannot sleep, and seeks out Aang.


Night is for secrets. In the cover of darkness, every emotion that remains bottled inside, spills out. Dripping onto the cool grass is every thought, moment, or yearning that struggles to hide from the revealing light of day. It is only at night when a person's true self is revealed. There is no façade, or half-lies – only the truth. It was on this night the truth was finally revealed to Katara. She was a bloodbender.

Aang laid back against one of Appa's giant paws, the day's events swirling around in his head. The full moon shined brightly overhead, dappled with twinkling stars. It was hard to imagine that an image full of such beauty could bring horrible chaos. The moon granted Katara her powers. Watching the waterbender at work was a sight to behold. Katara was a force to be reckoned with, and every time Aang saw her waterbending first hand, his breath was taken away.

Without Katara, Aang would have been lost. She gave him direction and the drive to keep fighting, even when he wanted to give up the whole avatar business. She was his rock, his world, his love. Seeing the girl so distraught from the cruel manipulations of Hama broke his heart.

The water tribe girl had already been through so much in her short life, that Aang had to grieve every time something new came along to try to bring her down. Guilt was a familiar feeling for the avatar, and with each moment that Katara was battered due to traveling with him, the feeling of guilt, heavy as a stone in his stomach, increased in weight. The easiest solution would be to send Katara home, where she would be safe, but Aang was selfish.

Even though Katara and Aang had only known each other for less than a year, the airbender doubted he could ever life without his smiling face by his side. However, on this deceivingly beautiful night, Katara was not smiling. The moment the gang had set up for camp, she had taken her bedroll far from the group, and had gone to sleep. With her barriers set up, Aang did not even try to approach her. It was evident that she did not want help.

The rejection stung. On some level, Aang recognized the need to be alone, but honestly, he wanted Katara to need him. This feeling made Aang feel absolutely disgusting, but the desire never went away. The water tribe girl helped him out so much that Aang wished he could reciprocate.

Aang was torn from his musings by a body sliding in next to his own. Katara's bright blue eyes stared for a moment, before they began to fill with tears. The teen immediately tried to hide her face, but Aang was faster. His smooth, pale hands cupped Katara's tan cheek, creating a beautiful contrast. Rubbing his thumb across her rounded cheeks, Aang caught the tears flowing down. A single tear traveled its way down Aang's hand and arm, following the path of his arrow.

"Katara," Aang whispered in a pained voice. Seeing the girl he loved in so much pain shattered his own heart. Wrapping his free arm around Katara's back, Aang pulled the girl into his bare chest.

The tears continued to flow freely, each drop splashing against the avatar's chest. Aang rubbed Katara's back in comfort, trying not to notice how her body perfectly melded into his own. This moment was not about Aang, but rather comforting Katara. Admittedly, Aang could not help but cheer internally. Katara sought him out. Not her brother, not Toph, but him.

After a time that felt both like an eternity and a millisecond, Katara pulled out of Aang's embrace. The girl scrubbed at her face to remove any evidence of her breakdown, but Aang could feel the salty tears drying on his skin. He hoped she wouldn't notice.

"Are you okay?" Aang inquired.

Katara shook her head. "Not really."

The pair sat in silence, which grew increasingly more awkward by the minute. A voice in Aang's head screamed at him to say something, anything, however Aang seemed to have lost all capacity to think while being in such close proximity to Katara.

"I'm a monster," Katara declared, breaking the silence.

"No!" Aang grabbed Katara's hand, holding it to his heart. "You are not a monster. Hama is."

"I used bloodbending," Katara sobbed.

"You saved my life. You saved Sokka's life. You did what you had to. That doesn't make you a monster," Aang was resolute in his stance. There was not a single bit of Katara that was remotely monstrous.

"Katara, you are the best of us all. Your heart is so pure and kind. You keep us all together."

Tears gathered at the corners of Katara's eyes once more. "Then why do I feel so terrible?"

"Hama took advantage of your kindness. She is an angry, cruel woman. She tries to poison everyone around her," Aang took a breath, starting to get emotional himself. "You know what, Katara? I know you're too strong to let someone like her break you."

"Yeah?" Katara spoke with a wobbly grin.

Aang beamed back. "Yeah."

The airbender wrapped an arm around Katara's shoulders, and pulled her into his side. It should be everything Aang wanted, but he was still unsatisfied. He was allowed to touch her, but he couldn't kiss her or be with her. Every instinct was screaming at him to lean over and kiss her, but Aang knew it wasn't the right time.

"So why can't you sleep?" Katara finally inquired.

Aang shrugged, careful to not dislodge Katara. "Worried about you, I guess."

Katara flushed, and snuggled in further to Aang's side. "Thanks. For thinking about me."

"What kind of avatar would I be if I didn't concern myself with my friends?" Aang teased, gazing softly down at Katara.

"You're already the best avatar in my book."

The avatar flinched, and began to draw his arm away. Katara caught his hand, and intertwined his fingers with her own.

"Aang, what's wrong?"

"You know my story, Katara," Aang began. "What kind of avatar runs away, and becomes frozen for one-hundred years? I abandoned my people. No, I abandoned the world."

Katara squeezed his hand tightly. "You're human, Aang. You made a mistake. Plus, if you never left, you and I would have never met!"

Aang nodded, and Katara, now convinced that Aang truly understood her message, began tracing the lines of his arrows by his shoulder and behind his neck. Aang was certain that Katara was doing this to him on purpose, unable to contain the shivers of pleasure. A warm pressure began to swell in his stomach, and as if like a magnet, Aang and Katara's eyes snapped together.

As if compelled by an external force, Aang and Katara began to lean in towards each other. The avatar closed his eyes, and somehow, he knew Katara was doing the same. Just as their lips began to brush together, Appa let out a massive snore.

The snore acted as an alarm, and the two kids sprang away from each other. Neither could look the other one in the eye. Aang knew, just like the day of Black Sun, this moment would never be discussed again. It was an unspoken rule between the two, and Aang wished more than anything that he could break it.

"I should probably go back to bed," Katara said in a hurried voice. Without waiting for a reply, she had already started to retreat.

Staring after Katara, Aang whispered, "I love you," but she had already walked away.


End file.
